Hobby or Sport???

[diver 85]

both for me--------and an expensive one( for both....)

 

[oldogre]

For what it is worth.
SPORT amusement,diversion,fun
HOBBY favourite subject or occupation that is not ones main bussiness.
(Concise Oxford English Dictionary.)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

They call curling a sport...that one I don't get. How drunk were they when they figured out that one.

How drunk were they when they figured this one out?

Take a bunch of fishermen, get 'em good and "lubed up", then tell 'em to go fetch a flag off the end of a greased pole. Fisherman slips, cracks his 'nads on the pole, falls into the water ... his friends go fetch him out, feed him a few more beers, and he goes and does it again.

There's so much drinking involved it's almost Canadian ... and it's way more fun to watch than curling ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Carlos Danger]

I would say it's probably a little of both for me. When I'm on a dive trip, I consider it a sporting endeavor. During my off-season, when I typically research future trips and buy new equipment, I think of it more as a hobby.

For those fortunate enough to live the lifestyle year-round, it's probably more like an incurable sickness; a malady I'm sure most are happy to endure.

 

[captndale]

When most people say that they are "into sports" they mean that they like to sit on their a*ses, eat chips and drink beer while watching highly paid entertainers play games.

 

[TMHeimer]

Have you seen some of those lumber jack competitions? They are working wood and carving on a big scale, but I'd call them a sport...a stupid sport, but nevertheless a sport!

They call curling a sport...that one I don't get. How drunk were they when they figured out that one.

Actually, Curling is a very strenuous sport. Originally American, it's not my cup of tea, but my wife played for years. The stress with all the bending, skating and sweeping is very taxing, so it is unusual to see older curlers in the top competitions. A large percentage are younger than 30.

 

[DaleC]

The word "sport" derives from the expression to "disport oneself", implying anything that is recreational. If you're looking for an expression that covers something that's both recreational and competitive, then there's the word "game". After all, we have the "Olympic Games", not the "Olympic Sports". One concession I will make to the "sport=competition" hypothesis is that it's a product of American culture. Here in Europe, we have a broader view of what "sport" means. In Russia, chess has indeed the status of a sport, do-able by anybody who understands the rules, not just by people with physical prowess. In Germany, recreational diving is often called "Sporttauchen" (sports diving) to distinguish it from professional diving. Broader definitions of the word "sport" do indeed open the doors to activities where "disporting" the mind, rather than the body, is involved, such as reading for pleasure. I don't see anything inherently wrong in this, bearing in mind the original meaning of "sport". If people can't live with sport being anything other than competitive, let them use the terms "game" or "competitive sport" instead to define such activities clearly. In my view, for what it's worth, scuba and snorkel diving can be described as sports, activities, hobbies, pursuits, pastimes and passions.

Ok David, I'll bite. I see you are from the UK but you make this statement "Here in Europe". Am I incorrect in assuming that the English do not consider themselves European or has this changed with the coming of the Chunnel? I always thought you chaps considered yourselves an island nation quite apart from the continent.
Forgive me but it is my "sport" to ask these kind of questions

 

[vladimir]

Those are also the people that shouldn't be diving at all.

Or wearing lycra under any circumstances whatsoever!

Actually, if it gets somebody off the couch, away from the kitchen, and maybe even into a gym, I'm all for it. The risk of sudden death might be enhanced in the short run, but remaining inert has its own set of risks.

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

Maybe I'm reading you wrong here, but curling does not appear to me to be "Originally American" (which could be Chile to Canada for some of us).

Actually, Curling is a very strenuous sport. Originally American, it's not my cup of tea, but my wife played for years. The stress with all the bending, skating and sweeping is very taxing, so it is unusual to see older curlers in the top competitions.

Curling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Curling is thought to have been invented in late medieval Scotland, with the first written reference to a contest using stones on ice coming from the records of Paisley Abbey, Renfrewshire, in February 1541. Two paintings (both dated 1565) by Pieter Bruegel the Elder depict Dutch peasants curling—Scotland and the Low Countries had strong trading and cultural links during this period, which is also evident in the history of golf.

 

[TMHeimer]

Maybe I'm reading you wrong here, but curling does not appear to me to be "Originally American" (which could be Chile to Canada for some of us).



Curling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sorry-- ambiguous wording. Meant that I, not curling, am originally American. Thus, like most Americans south of the Northern border states, it's not my cup of tea. Not sure where curling started-Scotland, like golf, maybe?.